Electric toaster



E. SCHWARTZ.

ELECTRIC TOASTER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30,1919.

1A25,344. Patented Aug. 8, 1922.

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E, SCHWARTZ.

ELECTRIC TOASTER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30,1919.

Patented Aug. 8, 1922 3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

fury/7RD Scuwmerz E. SCHWARTZ.

ELECTRIC TOASTER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30,1919.

Patented Aug. 8, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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EDWARD SCHWARTZ, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO MANHATTAN ELECTRICALSETTS.

CORPORATION OF MASSACHU- ELECTRIC TOASTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1922.

Application filed June 30, 1919. Serial No. 307,614.

To all whom it may concern:

Be-it known that I, EDWARD SCHWARTZ, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and residing in the city, county, and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Toasters, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electric appliances, and particularly to anelectric'toaster, the object of my invention being to provide aconvenient portable appliance adapted to be arranged on a serving tableand connected to a source of power by an attachment plug for toastingbread crackers, etc., at the table.

In the accompanying drawings- Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a toaster inwhich my invention is embodied in one 1 form Fig. 2 is a horizontalsection therethrough on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an inverted plan with the bottom removed;

Fig. 4 is a broken side elevation;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the toast carrier detached.

While the present invention may be embodied in constructions of varioustypes, I

.have here shown the appliance as comprising a stand 10 upon which ahousing 11 of any suitable construction is mounted to encase theelectrical conductors and form a toasting chamber. lVithin the housingis arranged a base plate 12 with down turned side and end flanges 13, towhich the housing 11 is secured. Beneath the base plate and extendingbetween theflanges 13 is a cross web 14 on which are supported inhorizontal position the terminals 15 and 16 of a receptacle adapted tobe engaged by the cooperating contacts of an attachment plug. In orderto guide the attachment lug into engagement with these terminals I havemounted a collar 17 in axial alignment with the receptacle terminals andcar-- ried by one end of the housing 11.

At opposite ends of the base plate 12 and also beneath the latter, Ihave mounted terminal straps 18 and 19, to which lead wires 20 and 21respectively connect the receptacle terminals 15 and 16. Strips ofinsulating material 22 separate these straps from the base. On the upperface of the base plate I have arranged three series of hooks 23, whilecorresponding series of hooks 24 depend from the top of the casing, allof the hooks being suitably insulated from their supports. Threeresistance coils 25 are'arranged in parallel within the toasting chamber26 and are looped zigzag over the hooks 23 and 24, their ends beingpassed through insulating bushings in the base plate 12, and connectedby screws 27 to the terminal plates 18 and 19. Between adjacent coils Ihave mounted on the base plate 12 a pair of channels 28 and 29 withspread flanges forming slideways.

Cooperating with these fixed channels 28 and 29 I have provided a toastcarrier-comprising a pair of channels 30 and 31 of slightly greaterwidth, and having their flanges bent inward to engage the flanges of thefixed channels 28 and 29 and slide thereon. These channels are securedin any suitable Way, as by means of brackets 32, to the housing end 33,which is independent of the body of the housing 11, but conforms to itsend contour. Upon the channels 30 and 31 I provide a toast support,which may be of any suitable construction, but is here shown ascomprising for each of the channels a pair of wire loops 34 and 35pivoted at their lower ends to clips riveted to the channels. Inorder tohold these loops in engagement with the bread I have provided springs 36and 37 which engage the wire ends and tend constantly to draw each pairof loops together, as illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6. In order to separatethe loops so that bread may be inserted between the same I provideaslide 38 working in a slot 39 in the end plate 33 and having a pair oflugs 40 which engage the strands 41 and 42 of the inner loop wire ofeach pair of bread holders. When the slide 38 is lifted in its slot 39the lugs 40 draw the strands 41 and '42 toward each other and againstthe action of the springs 36 and 37. The bread may be then inserted andthe slide again pushed down, whereupon the springs 36 and 37 close theloops against the opposite sides of the bread and hold it in properposition with relation to the resistance coils.

In the construction here shown I have .shown the outer resistance coilsspaced from the central coil a greater distance at the top at the upperedge before the lower edge is properly toasted if the coils be arrangedin parallel. This outward inclination of the side coils necessitates acorresponding inclination of the holder loops on the bread carrier, andto this end the channels 30 and 31 are oppositely inclined slightly,their adjacent edges being somewhat higher than their outer e ges.- Itis obvious that the bread is supported by the loops in mid position onopposite sides of the central coil and between lower the slide 38.

the latter and the two side coils.

In order to withdraw the toast carrier from the toastin chamber Iprovide a handle 43 of insulatlng material riveted to lugs 44 at thebase of the end plate 33. An insulating handle 45 is also provided toraise and On the sides of the housing I provide further insulatinghandles 46 and 47 by which the appliance may be lifted as a whole andmoved from place to place conveniently. Insulating feet 48 may also beprovided for the stand 10 to insulate the latter from the table or othersupport.

The underlying thought of my invention is to provide a toaster in whichthe resistance coils are arranged on opposite sides of the piece ofbread so as to toast both sides simultaneously. Obviously the particularshape and arrangement of the housing is immaterial, and in fact it mightbe omitted entirely, although it is preferred since it prevents heatloss and thus expedites the toasting operation and economizes currentconsumption. Similarly the particular method of introducing the breadbetween the coils is immaterial, and it might be possible to entirelydispense with a removable carrier, the slices being inserted and removeddirectly by hand. A carrier or some device for removlng the toastedbread facilitates, however, the use of the appliance. Moreover, while Ihave shown a toaster adapted to operate upon two slices at once, asingle pair of coils may be "used, or the number may be multiplied toform as many toasting compartments as may be desired. Again, the centralcoil may have a greater heating capacity than the side coils.

I claim- 1. An electric toaster comprising a pair of upright, laterallyspaced, resistance units arranged in vertical zigzag, and means forremovably supporting 'on edge between the same a piece of bread, theupper portions ,of said resistance units being spaced further apart thanthe lower portions thereof for the purpose specified.

2. In an electric toaster, a bread carrier comprising a base, a pair ofsupporting wings hinged thereon, and slide means for moving said wingstogetherfto engage the opposite sides of a piece of bread depositedtherebetween.

3. In 'an electric toaster, a bread carrier comprising a base, wingsthereon, and slide means tending to close said wings upon an interposedpiece'of bread.

4. In an electric toaster, a bread carrier comprising a base, wingsthereon, and slide means tending to close said wings upon an interposedplece of, bread, together with means for spreadin said wings apart topermit the introduction of a piece of bread therebetween.

5. In an electric toaster, a housing having a toasting chamber, spacedresistance coils arranged therein, and a bread carrier adapted to moveintosaid chamber and present a slice of bread between said coils, saidcarrier comprising a plate adapted to complete the housing in theinserted position of the carrier in combination with the bread-engagingdevice on the slide, and an operating member therewith supported by theend closure.

6. An electric toaster, a base plate, a pair of parallel slidewaysthereon, resistance coils arranged intermediate and on opposite sidesthereof, in combination with a bread carrier straddling the intermediateresistance unit and engaging said slideways, together with means on saidslide for supporting pieces of bread between the several resistanceunits. In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

EDWARD SCHWARTZ.

